Baby steps are an improvement for the tunnel-boring machine known as Bertha. The drill moved a total of 1.5 feet this week, but the symbolic distance probably felt like a mile.
"Workers at the Seattle waterfront switched on the power to the world’s largest boring machine and revved it forward early Tuesday," reports Mike Lindblom, "bringing hope to the Highway 99 tunnel project after a two-year delay."
Bertha had a breakthrough moment back in February when it moved far enough to remove a section of the drill for repairs.
The most recent development in the saga, moving the drill forward 1.5 feet, is considered a test. But this test has a particularly critical air to it according to Linblom: "Government agencies lack a Plan B, so failure is not an option.
Buried at the bottom of the article are some of the details of fallout fro the two-year delay, including the cost of the repairs:
"The main partners, Dragados USA of Spain and Tutor-Perini of California, have said in court documents that overall costs for repair, including excavation of the giant repair-access vault, are expected to exceed $143 million. It could take years for STP, Hitachi Zosen, their insurers, and Washington state to sue or negotiate who pays for repairs and delays, beyond the basic $1.35 billion STP contract."
Read the full story: Bertha back on the move after 2 years of delays
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